- The Maharashtra Government has partnered with the Ramon Magsaysay Award-winning NGO, Educate Girls, to strengthen the state’s open schooling system and help out-of-school children, especially girls, return to education.
- A Technical Assistance Unit will be set up to support the Maharashtra State Open School Board, drive outreach, re-enrolment, and provide technology-based learning resources, focusing on disadvantaged communities.
- The initiative will also link students to government schemes, scholarships, and skill-based courses, aiming to enhance employability and ensure inclusive and uninterrupted learning across the state.
The Maharashtra Government has partnered with the non-profit organisation Educate Girls to strengthen the state’s open schooling system and help students, particularly girls, who have dropped out of formal education, return to the academic stream. The collaboration aims to create flexible learning pathways for those whose education was interrupted, ensuring that no child in Maharashtra is left behind.
Announcing the initiative, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis highlighted the government’s commitment to inclusive education, emphasizing that strategic partnerships with experienced organisations like Educate Girls would enhance the quality and reach of open schooling. The MoU, signed under the guidance of the Chief Minister and the initiative of School Education Minister Dadaji Bhuse, is part of broader efforts to keep students engaged in education from pre-primary to secondary levels and to bring out-of-school children back into the formal system.
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The initiative will establish a Technical Assistance Unit to provide strategic guidance and technical support to the Maharashtra State Open School Board. This unit will lead outreach and awareness programmes, identify students who have not completed their Class 10 and Class 12 education, and facilitate their re-enrolment. Special attention will be given to girls, women, and socially and economically disadvantaged communities, while technology-based learning systems and enhanced educational resources will be developed to improve the quality of open schooling programmes.
In addition, the programme will link students to government schemes, scholarships, fee concessions, and skill-based courses, helping improve employability and encouraging further education. The move aligns with efforts to regulate and strengthen early education, including mandatory registration for private pre-primary institutions, and reflects a growing focus on ensuring that students can continue their learning uninterrupted.
Educate Girls, a Ramon Magsaysay Award-winning organisation recognised across Asia for its work in promoting girls’ education, will provide guidance, mentorship, and technical expertise to implement these programmes. Officials believe the partnership will significantly expand educational access, empower students who were previously excluded from formal schooling, and create new opportunities for academic and personal growth across Maharashtra.
